Well as we have all galloped through the turns and got our hands dirty time to discuss strategy
Wonders
Curing wonderholicism is the key to moving up from noble, hence the theme! The best tips I got to winning my first (and only win
)game on Monarch were:
No Wonders
Go for BW and Pottery,
Build Granaries then
Build Library (using the whip if required) + 2 scientists
Only build infrastructure you know you need and why - if unsure build an axeman and kick some butt instead!!
So what wonder should we permit ourselves
Pyramids - non-industrious + stone in a crappy location => needs a lot of chopping so forget it
Oracle - Too much of a crutch + on higher levels you really struggle to do a meaningful Oracle Slinghsot so best learn to win without it
What do I advocate?
Great Lighthouse 'cos
We are a coastal civilzation
Has along life span through to Corporation
No Resource requirements so we are on a level playing field
Achievable as not top priority for the AI.
Will also show the avlue of Hrabours (an undervalued bit of infrastructure)
Colossus is an alternative but expires earlier with Astronomy which we may need to build fairly quick if we are stuck on a small island (A distinct possibility having only met Hatty so far).
Tactics re Hatty.
The extra cities may be a red herring as by the time we have built the three key cities (red, yellow and pink) and grown our economy ready to expand we will be getting ready to whip hatty's ass
. So if she builds a city for us it saves us a settler!. Seriosuly building red, yellow and pick and getting them up to speed is going to take a long while and we can't afford an unprodcutive , distant and expensive city to close off Hatty.
Tactics for my turnset
Move warriors further out from cities to remove more fog of war and reduce Barbarian spawning grounds
Settler - Torn between Yellow and Pick dot here. Pink more immediately productive with the two seafood resource + further away and harder to defend than Yellow dot. (views welcome
)
Research
Finish Pottery , then Animal Husbandry, then Ironworking
Builds, Axes up to what feels safe.
Mecca to get a lightouse fairly soon for increased food
+ Library. (scientists will help our research when we are commerce poor)
Other
free up a warrior to find out what/who else is on the island.